1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a handling device for transferring bulk material from a barge floating in a body of water into at least one receiving device, and to a method for this purpose.
2. Prior Art
From EP 0 161 054 A1 a generic transfer device for transferring bulk material is known. The barge shown is rolled over a supporting surface so that the barge attains an angle of rotation at which the bulk material is conveyed from the barge to a receiving device, for example to a bin system. In order to impart the rolling motion to the barge, a crane facility is used, and the barge is first slightly raised, with the use of a traction means, and is then transferred to the rolling motion by way of the supporting surface. This arrangement is associated with disadvantages as a result of the design of the transfer device as a dry dock, wherein barges of the type of interest in this context can attain a length of, for example, 100 metres and more, and can, together with the bulk material, for example attain a weight in excess of 25,000 metric tons. If the transfer device is designed as a dry dock, said dry dock needs to be dimensioned correspondingly. Consequently, significant constructional effort is used to build a corresponding dry dock. In addition, the barge needs to be moved into the receiving device and first needs to be drained so that the barge can subsequently be tilted.
From U.S. Pat. No. 4,659,275 A1 a further transfer device for transferring bulk material from a barge floating in a body of water is known, wherein the transfer device itself is designed so as to be floating and is formed by a cylinder into which the barge can be moved. This arrangement is associated with considerable disadvantages in the sealing of the cylinder and in the removal of the bulk material from the receiving device, wherein said bulk material must first be placed into intermediate storage before it can be conveyed onwards, for example on land or on water. Such a system, too, is not usable with barges of the above-described dimensions and the above-described weight; in particular the system is associated with a disadvantage in that the receiving device receives the bulk material far below the barge, and subsequently, by way of corresponding conveyor means, the bulk material must be conveyed to a higher level.